Amador Damiano
Every mercenary has his price, but for Captain Amador Damiano, coin is not the allure but only a tool for equipping and motivating his men for battle. Damiano fights for glory, fame, honor, and the certainty that he will in time become a living legend. He would sooner accept modest wages for a difficult but daring contract over being paid a small fortune to sit idle standing guard. He takes a satisfaction from battle he can find nowhere else—not from facing danger, but from overcoming it. Damiano lives for the moments when defeat looms but he finds that one solution, that one bold moveto bring victory. Some see him as brashly overconfident or needlessly extravagant, but in battle after battle he has earned the adoration of his men who know he can often achieve what they thought to be impossible. Damiano must constantly weigh the needs of his men against his thirst for adventure and glory. He has found the balance required to inspire the men, paying them well for their services while impressing them with his bold and unconventional tactics. While Damiano enjoys taking risks, he savors life and does not idly spend the lives of those in his command. He believes it is his responsibility to see that his finest warriors rise to greatness at his side.Damiano is discerning about his choice of contracts, although he occasionally tempers his drive for greatness with prudence to maintain the morale of the men. Those willing to pay his rates get no mere hired blade but a conqueror-for-hire with his own formidable retinue of warjacks and an army of skilled soldiers. Damiano leads his men with humor and aplomb, exhorting them to seize the day and live for the moment. His confidence and bravado inspires as much loyalty in his men as the coin they are paid. His reputation and bold approach have attracted the more daring and adventurous Steelhead mercenaries to seek him out, and many of his officers are as eager for fame as their captain. These men still expect to be paid what they are worth but are also willing to embrace daring plans and difficult contracts. They take added satisfaction from being among the most accomplished members of their far flung mercenary company. Each of Damiano’s lieutenants has a strong personality and his own style, but the Ordic warcaster unites them and leads by example. Because his men understand the value of his leadership, they thrive on natural competition as each tries to outdo the others and impress their captain with their ingenuity and courage under fire. History For generations the Damiano family has raised aristocrats of war, forming a mercenary dynasty that has produced some of the most notable fighters for coin in western Immoren. The Damianos trace their family’s rise in fortune to the years after the Orgoth were repelled and the Corvis Treaties were signed. When the nations of the Iron Kingdoms first fell to internal disputes, they did so through hired intermediaries, and the founder of the Damiano mercenary tradition gained great wealth from contracts with first one side and then another. Family wealth waxed and waned over the centuries, but even in the poorest times the Damianos managed to retain their ancestral estate in central Ord. More recently family coffers have been filled by the constant strife of the region’s escalating wars. Unlike others born to wealth, their young men and women do not live lives of leisure but are expected to further the family’s riches on the battlefield. Damiano was raised on the legends of his ancestors and from an early age burned with the desire to meet or exceed their examples. The sorcerous spark has always been strong within the Damiano family, but it has become particularly concentrated in the last few generations. Amador Damiano is the third heir in succession to manifest the warcaster talent, an exceedingly rare phenomenon. His father arranged for the boy to receive extensive tutoring and training in ’jack handling, the arcane arts, broadsword dueling, and Ordic combined-arms battlefield tactics. Amador feels keenly that being the third Damiano heir in a row with the warcaster talent means his star is in ascension and that nothing can stand in the way of his ambition. He truly feels favored by chance, which brings a confidence that occasionally borders on recklessness. The family once ran their own mercenary outfit, but Damiano’s grandfather sold this interest and linked their fortunes to the rapidly expanding Steelhead Mercenary Company. The Steelheads have since maintained agreements with the Damianos to provide chapter-ofchoice considerations and fast advancement to upper ranks. Amador began as a lieutenant of the Steelheads in Berck and was quickly promoted to captain and moved to the Merin branch. He proved himself more than worthy of his fee even as he earned a reputation for grandiose boasts. Although he made his initial fame out of Merin, he is not tied down; he has made contacts and earned favors at Steelhead branches across western Immoren. Bravos and career mercenaries eagerly seek him out in hopes of joining in his conquests. Damiano has hired his services across western Immoren, fighting on behalf of—and sometimes against—nearly every major power in the region. He was particularly active in the War in Llael, carefully negotiating short-term contracts that allowed him to have fought on several different sides by the time Cygnar was forced out of that kingdom. His magnanimous demeanor and shrewd negotiating skills have enabled him to maintain professional ties with paymasters who understand that a mercenary’s loyalty is only as durable as his contract. Though his troops are disciplined, Damiano is no tyrant. Provided they heed him in combat and do not draw the attention of the law or bring shame to the Steelhead name, his men may do as they please on their own time. He encourages them to enjoy the benefits of the unique freedom afforded by the mercenary life, including enjoying their time away from the field of battle and spending their money as it suits their fancy. Damiano enjoys his own luxuries, and at times his behavior can be indolent. His ornate armor is comparable to some of the heirlooms cherished by Ordic castellans. He savors quality food, expensive wine, and refined female companionship. Away from the battlefield Damiano has been known to lead his men in rousing drinking songs, provoke insufferable nobles to battles of wits, and engage in occasional random acts of generosity to those whose lives have been shattered by war. His mood and temperament are mercurial, as befits a man who seems at times larger than life. Yet once Damiano has agreed to a contract, he deploys his company with the precision of the greatest Ordic generals. His Steelheads march in perfect lines and are as responsive to commands as any regular army infantry. Damiano leads from their midst, inspiring them with his presence, his sorcerous powers, and his skill with the blade. His ancestral weapons, Judgment and Glory, flash in the sun as Damiano leads his men to inexorable victory and the riches that follow References Category:Warcaster Category:Mercenaries